The present invention relates to alerting a user of a mobile electronic device of a new event and, more particularly, to synchronizing output of follow-up event alerts on a mobile electronic device to changes in the state of motion of the device.
Mobile electronic devices, such as cellular phones and personal data assistants (PDA), notify users of new events, such as new text and voicemail messages, received from a wireless network in various ways. Many mobile electronic devices output initial alerts respecting new events when the new event arrives from the wireless network. If the user does not take action on the device (e.g. opening a flip cover or pressing a key on the device) in response to the initial alert, however, mobile electronic devices output follow-up alerts using various approaches. To improve the chance of prompt notification, some mobile electronic devices output periodic follow-up alerts until the user takes action on the device. However, if the user does not take such action soon after these follow-up alerts begin, these follow-up alerts can drain the battery and annoy people in the vicinity of the device. To avoid battery drain and annoyance of other people, other mobile electronic devices wait until the user takes action on the device before outputting follow-up alerts. However, if the user does not take such action soon after the new event is received from the wireless network, the new event may be stale by the time it is read or heard by the user.